I've been in Italy for the past few days, and I've got some lovely pics to share and stories to tell, but I am going to save Italy until after I finish up in Rome and instead tell you about the place I am staying tonight. The Republic of San Marino.
For those that don't know, San Marino is one of the oldest and smallest Republics in the world. The country dates back to 300 and something BC and has only 30,000 residents. It is also the country that bought us Valentina and her awful ode to social networks and cyber sex at Eurovision this year.
Here is what we were told in the bus in the way here. We were told it was a very pretty country on the top of a hill, and that it was duty free, and thus many Italians come he to purchase alcohol and cigarettes. So I was prepared for bottle-o's and tobacconists. I wasn't prepared for all the weapons and pro-Hitler items. By the time I got back to my hotel I was feeling a little like this guy... (it is actually a statue in memorial of Chernobyl).
The good stuff first. It is a very pretty little place.
The buildings and the streets are all the same stone. You can even go and watch the changing of the guard (singular) here.
The view is also pretty amazing as you look back down at Italy.
This is the view at the back of the hotel...
And this is the view from my balcony...
I decided to spend my afternoon being Italian, and shopping in San Marino. I bought the customary snow globe, and some postcards, and then some jewelry stores caught my eye. I'd been told silver was cheap, and as many of you know, I am now in the market for earrings. Now this is where my photos start getting dodgy (they don't like piccies in some stores). I went to the window to look and the earrings and discovered that whilst they sold jewelry in the window, inside the store was every kind of rifle, handgun, high powered weapon, knuckle dusters, knife, sword, mace, Kevlar and balaclavas that you can imagine (have a look to the left if the picture inside the jewelry store). This wasn't the only store that had this theme (jewelry in the window, weapons inside). This was part of a strip of about 6 stores with the same theme.
Other stores were a little more singular in their focus.
Not only where there more gun shops than you could poke a stick at, but the placement of them was so...unusual. The one above (the first I came to) was next to a store that sold nothing but Christmas decorations, a bar and a toy store.
I was only feeling slightly off put at this point, and I went to purchase some postcards, which as it turned out were being sold in the bottle shop. As I was leaving after paying I saw a French couple (who don't speak English) from my tour group. They looked horrified. They saw me and started pointing furiously at the wine and beer. There was one entire wall of alcoholic beverages with these labels...
At this point I was feeling more than a little off put and decided I might spend the rest of the afternoon hanging out at the hotel.
Something tells me one trip to San Marino in my life might be enough for me.
For those that don't know, San Marino is one of the oldest and smallest Republics in the world. The country dates back to 300 and something BC and has only 30,000 residents. It is also the country that bought us Valentina and her awful ode to social networks and cyber sex at Eurovision this year.
Here is what we were told in the bus in the way here. We were told it was a very pretty country on the top of a hill, and that it was duty free, and thus many Italians come he to purchase alcohol and cigarettes. So I was prepared for bottle-o's and tobacconists. I wasn't prepared for all the weapons and pro-Hitler items. By the time I got back to my hotel I was feeling a little like this guy... (it is actually a statue in memorial of Chernobyl).
The good stuff first. It is a very pretty little place.
The buildings and the streets are all the same stone. You can even go and watch the changing of the guard (singular) here.
The view is also pretty amazing as you look back down at Italy.
This is the view at the back of the hotel...
And this is the view from my balcony...
I decided to spend my afternoon being Italian, and shopping in San Marino. I bought the customary snow globe, and some postcards, and then some jewelry stores caught my eye. I'd been told silver was cheap, and as many of you know, I am now in the market for earrings. Now this is where my photos start getting dodgy (they don't like piccies in some stores). I went to the window to look and the earrings and discovered that whilst they sold jewelry in the window, inside the store was every kind of rifle, handgun, high powered weapon, knuckle dusters, knife, sword, mace, Kevlar and balaclavas that you can imagine (have a look to the left if the picture inside the jewelry store). This wasn't the only store that had this theme (jewelry in the window, weapons inside). This was part of a strip of about 6 stores with the same theme.
Other stores were a little more singular in their focus.
Not only where there more gun shops than you could poke a stick at, but the placement of them was so...unusual. The one above (the first I came to) was next to a store that sold nothing but Christmas decorations, a bar and a toy store.
I was only feeling slightly off put at this point, and I went to purchase some postcards, which as it turned out were being sold in the bottle shop. As I was leaving after paying I saw a French couple (who don't speak English) from my tour group. They looked horrified. They saw me and started pointing furiously at the wine and beer. There was one entire wall of alcoholic beverages with these labels...
At this point I was feeling more than a little off put and decided I might spend the rest of the afternoon hanging out at the hotel.
Something tells me one trip to San Marino in my life might be enough for me.
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